Antiquity: The Pottery Industry

‘So with the potter sitting at his labor, revolving the wheel with his feet.

He is always concerned for his products, and turns them out in quantity’

(Ecclus 38.29-30)

Pottery is one of the oldest human industries, with some ancient shards dating to as long ago as 20,000 BC. Archaeological evidence indicates that pottery production in the ancient Middle East was a sophisticated, specialised craft, involving potter’s wheels and firing kilns.

Ancient Potter’s Workshop. Source: The Sociology of Pottery in Ancient Palestine.

The invention of the potter’s wheel around 5000 BC certainly revolutionised the craft, allowing mass production of identical vessels in a type of rudimentary assembly line. This was necessary due to the high demand market; ceramics were in frequent use, incredibly fragile and often removed from circulation for burial or ritual purposes. As human society developed – technologically, politically and socially – the shape and decoration of ceramic wares expanded, moving from simple vessels to increasingly elaborate and varied items, such as this chalice.

Name: Chalice

Origin Location: Iron Age Palestine

Collection: Petrie Palestine Collection, Institute of Archaeology

Object ID: L1149

Material: Ceramic

Description: Excavated at Tell al-Ajjul in the Gaza Strip, this object is roughly 3000 years old. Unfortunately, we have little information about its specific origins or use. However, Rachael Sparks is currently undertaking a project to catalogue and digitise information about all items in the Petrie Palestinian Collection. One hypothesis is that the chalice played some role in burial ritual, as it is unusual for such a delicate object to have survived so long intact, and therefore it may have been protected inside a tomb. Indeed, burying objects alongside the dead was not uncommon in the Ancient Near East. 

So how does pottery production fit into the wider societal structure of the ancient Middle East? The volume and varied location of archaeological finds suggests it was a booming industry, with several potteries typically clustered around one urban centre. Archaeologist Bryant Wood believes that, in addition to these urban centres, there were established markets to distribute pottery to surrounding villages, as well as merchants to transport products to adjacent urban centres and beyond. Though there was an abundance of clay in the region so pottery could be produced in nearly any location as long as there was consumer demand!

Modern History: The Automobile Industry

However, it was not until the development of modern machinery that mass production as we know it today truly emerged. The early 20th century was a key turning point as the assembly line became popularised by the Ford Motor Company. Automobile mogul Henry Ford was determined to create an affordable car for the masses. He combined his own creativity and innovation with tried-and-tested concepts from watchmakers, bicycle mechanics and meat packers to develop the most efficient assembly line.

By 1927, the renowned Rouge River Factory was home to all steps in the manufacturing process, from refining raw materials to final assembly. The Model T, Ford’s most famous vehicle, was made up of more than 10,000 individual parts, each one independently manufactured with great precision. By splitting construction into a series of small steps, the assembly line boosted productivity and significantly lowered cost for buyers.

What impact did this milestone have on wider society? Not only was there suddenly mass auto-mobility, assembly line techniques could be applied to any industry; from food to fuel to household appliances. Widespread industrial efficiency contributed significantly to the Allies’ war victory, and during the latter half of the 20th century, the assembly line was connected to increasing urbanisation and expansion of the middle classes.

Contemporary Society: The Fashion Industry

So far, so good. But what impact does unconstrained reproduction of objects have on society? In the contemporary era, is mass production always a good thing? Artists, writers and filmmakers often use the assembly line as a symbol to represent the ills of technological advancement. Have a read of this passage from Aldous Huxley’s satirical novel, Brave New World, and see if you can spot the parallels with Ford’s efficient factories:

‘In the Bottling Room all was harmonious bustle and ordered activity. Flaps of fresh sow’s peritoneum ready to cut to the proper size came shooting up in little lifts from the Organ Store in the sub-basement. Whizz and then, click! the lift-hatches flew open; the Bottle-Liner had only to reach out a hand, take the flap, insert, smooth-down, and before the lined bottle had had time to travel out of reach along the endless band, whizz, click! another flap of peritoneum had shot up from the depths, ready to be slipped into yet another bottle, the next of that slow interminable procession on the band.’

The fashion industry – the third largest industry after automobiles and electronics, and the second most polluting after oil – has received particular criticism in recent years. In fact, the industry has been implicated in child labour, sexual harassment and the modern slavery crisis that affects 35.8 million people globally. The extent of these issues was revealed in 2015 documentary, The True Cost. You can watch the trailer below or access the entire feature via The True Cost website.

Mass production of cheap clothes in this way is known as ‘fast fashion’, in that it prioritises cheaper ‘disposable’ items of clothing and constant rotations of new products over quality and sustainability. Swedish retailer H&M, one of the largest and most recognisable retailers in the world, is a typical ‘fast fashion’ brand. H&M continue to use non-eco-friendly materials such as toxic dyes, solvents and pesticides, have not delivered on their promise to pay 85,000 workers a living wage by 2018, and have recently been implicated in abuse of female garment workers.

Founded in 1991, People Tree is a vastly different clothing company that produces sustainable Fair Trade fashion, upholding the ‘highest ethical and environmental standards from start to finish’. From natural materials such as organic cotton, responsible wool and low impact dyes, to traditional artisan methods such as hand weaving, knitting and embroidery, People Tree’s industrial choices ensure transparency, good working conditions, and as low environmental impact as possible. Therefore, these two seemingly identically reproduced black cotton t-shirts signify wildly different technological, environmental, social and political ideals. 

Name: Gaia Tee in Black

Retailer: People Tree

Price: £26

Material: 95% Organic Cotton, 5% Elastane